III. THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN ANCIENT TIMES.
The third event of the pentathlon was spear-throwing. In the athletic training of an Hellenic youth, spear-throwing came after the hand and arm had been strengthened by ball-playing and diskos-throwing.
Spear-throwing, as has been shown, growing out of the very early necessity of war-training, was a primitive mode of exercise. The spear (δόρυ, λόγχη) used by the Homeric heroes was very large, and as heavy as they could handle effectively. None but that warrior himself could wield the spear of Achilles. Hector’s spear was 16 feet long; the shaft was made of ash. A socket was fitted to the upper end of the spear, in which was inserted a bronze spear point. But that used at the pentathlon, and denoted by the term ἄκων, was smaller and lighter.
The attitude of the body, the movement of the arms and shoulders, and the carriage of the head were very different in spear-throwing from those in diskos-hurling. The athlete stood erect, and raised his right arm upward and slightly backward; his right foot was generally placed backward, while his left was advanced; his eye was fixed on a goal straight ahead. He grasped the spear in the middle and held it in a horizontal position on a level with his right ear; sometimes he moved it backward and forward before throwing, but as often omitted such preliminary exercise. Sometimes it was thrown by means of a strap attached to it, as is still the custom in many countries.
In the pentathlon, spear-throwing was a test rather of skill than of strength; an athlete who could win the victory with the diskos might suffer defeat with the spear, although diskos-throwing required more strength than spear-throwing. Spear-throwing trained the eye and made the arm deft in executing the eye’s direction.
It conferred upon the body other peculiar benefits; the organs of respiration were stimulated; the chest was strengthened and enlarged; the right arm was strengthened; in order to throw the spear effectively the athlete must maintain a graceful poise and have command of his entire body; to do so with a weight held aloft, strengthened the lower limbs, made their muscles more facile, and the step more sure.
By inserting this particular exercise into the pentathlon the early Olympians not only recognized the foregoing advantages, but they also honored the characteristic exercise of their ancestors, and subsequent Olympians followed their example. For the spear was the traditional sign of the freeman; as far back as myth and memory could go, it had been carried, even in peace, as an honorable and distinguishing token.
Plato, in his scheme of the ideal state, prescribed spear-throwing as a training for war, and directed that it should be practiced by women as well as by men.
At Rome, during the time of the emperors, spear-throwing was included among the gymnastic exercises of that city. Instruction in this art was received from the Mauritanians. But it is said that the Emperor Commodus surpassed even the skill of his instructors; in the amphitheatre he killed, according to the story, a hundred lions with as many spears; at another time he astonished the spectators by the dexterity with which he hurled his spear at the Mauritanian ostriches, as they ran by the amphitheatre at full speed; with every throw he severed a bird’s head from its body.
We have no accounts to show as to how far a Greek athlete could hurl a spear, but we know that savages of today can hurl it to a great distance. It is said by travellers that a Kaffir who suddenly comes upon game will hit an antelope ten or fifteen yards away without raising his arm.
The three events that have been described, leaping, diskos-throwing and spear-throwing, were probably the essential features of the pentathlon; that is to say, an athlete who won in all three events was probably crowned victor. If, however, the victories in the three events were not secured by the same man, the competition was decided by additional contests in running and wrestling. But as at other stages of the festival these two exercises were distinct events, a description of their technique may be omitted in this place. Among those who distinguished themselves in the pentathlon, were included some of the most illustrious men of Greece.
The pentathlon was succeeded by horse and chariot races.
Chariot racing, even as far back as the heroic time, had attained a high rank in the domain of antagonistics; it was, indeed, the first contest in the funeral games of Patroklos. (Il. xxiii. 262-650.) In the minute and vivid description of Homer, the nature of the contest and the arrangements are very clearly indicated. There was no artificially constructed hippodrome. A flat, open plain, with its natural irregularities and without buildings of any sort, served as the race-course. The point of starting was on the sea-coast, but the turning point was in the plain of Troy. The goal, which was the stump of a tree, could be seen in the far distance only by its having two white stones leaning against it on either side. On account of the great distance, the spectators were not able to distinguish between the approaching horses. (Il. 450 ff.) Hence rose an altercation between Idomeneus and Aias, as to whose chariot was leading in the race. Achilles advised both to wait quietly until the horses were nearer and the order of the chariots could be recognized by all.
With a very few points of difference, this description of Homer gives a good idea of a chariot race at Olympia. The difference consisted, first, in running the length of the course several times instead of once, in order that a body of spectators might witness the entire race; second, in the greater number of chariots, and third, in the arrangements, whereby they might start without confusion. In the games of Achilles, the chariots were five in number, each with two horses and a single driver, who stood upright in the chariot. As we have already mentioned, the Homeric hero made use of two horses in the race as well as in hostile combat, while the Olympic contestant did not limit himself to two horses. In fact, the four-horse chariot-race, which was introduced in the twenty-fifth Olympiad, was the first in honor and in importance, and always remained the most popular. In this contest, only kings, nobles, and the wealthy could take part, on account of the great expense involved in rearing fine horses, and in maintaining costly chariots. Very often, the victor had his triumphs recorded on the state issues of coins.
Races on horseback date from the thirty-third Olympiad. Philip of Macedon won in this contest, and celebrated his victory by having an enormous horse, ridden by a diminutive jockey, placed on his coinage. As this victory took place in the same year in which Potidaea fell into his hands and his son Alexander was born, he regarded that year as especially auspicious.
While the race of the quadrigæ of horses was introduced as early as the twenty-fifth Olympiad, that of the bigæ of horses was not introduced until the ninety-third Olympiad. A quadriga consisted of four horses harnessed to a chariot; a biga, of two horses. In the seventieth Olympiad, bigæ of mules were admitted, but in the eighty-fourth Olympiad they were excluded; their exclusion may be ascribed to two reasons: first, they presented an unpleasing appearance; second, among the Eleians, according to Pausanias, a curse had rested on the animals from ancient times.
Prior to the twenty-fifth Olympiad, all athletic contests had taken place in the Stadion. As chariot-racing, however, demanded more room, a separate race-course, called the Hippodrome, was established. The site of the Hippodrome cannot be exactly traced. This is because the Alpheios has washed away all certain indications of its limits. But from the account of Pausanias (V, 4; VI, 20, 7 foll.) it may be approximately located; it lay to the south of the Stadion and extended roughly parallel with it, though stretching far beyond it to the east. The German explorers who excavated Olympia inferred from the state of the ground that the Hippodrome was about 2526 feet in length. The Stadion and Hippodrome were closely connected, the rear part of the aphesis, or starting point, of the Hippodrome adjoining the end of the Stadion. At the farther end of the Hippodrome was the goal outside of which the chariots had to turn. To round this goal with advantage, that is, to keep as close to it as it was possible to do without upsetting his own chariot or colliding with another, required long practice and great dexterity on the part of the driver; it was indeed a very dangerous feat; at every race a large number of the chariots involved were wrecked, and in such accidents the charioteers rarely escaped without serious injuries. According to legend, Orestes had met his death at a Pythian festival; his chariot colliding with the goal, he fell to the ground, became entangled in the reins, and was dragged or trampled to death. After every turning of the goal, the chariots were greeted with the sound of trumpets in order that men and horses might attain new courage and vigor after so dangerous an ordeal.
The signal for the chariots to come out from the rooms allotted to them in the aphesis and form in line for the race was given by an eagle which, by means of mechanism, rose into the air at the same moment that a dolphin fell to the ground. Such a signal was characteristic of the Greek; but in the Roman races, the chariots started at the waving of a white cloth by a person of distinction.
The equestrian contests at Olympia were succeeded by boxing. Boxing for men was introduced at the Olympic festival in the twenty-third Olympiad, and for boys in the thirty-seventh Olympiad. But the sport was already very old, and its introduction at Olympia was probably a recognition of its popularity and antiquity. In fact, as the fist is the simplest and most natural weapon of mankind, it is not surprising to find that boxing was one of the earliest athletic games among the Hellenes. Homer’s detailed description of the contest of the invincible Epeios with Euryalos has already been mentioned, and Homer had probably heard many similar tales of the prowess of Mycenæan boxers. Polydeukes, the bravest boxer among the pre-Homeric heroes, is said to have defeated the strong Amykos. The latter was a teacher of the art, and allowed no stranger to depart from his country without challenging him to a pugilistic contest. Apollo himself, the gracious companion and leader of the Pierides, is described as engaging in a boxing contest at Olympus with Ares, the powerful god of war; perhaps in this myth there is a suggestion of the advantage which the nimble and quick-witted boxer sometimes has over a more bulky one. In the mythical founding of the Nemean games, Tydeus was victorious in a boxing contest. In the passage of Virgil’s Æneid (Book V, 401 ff.), which so closely resembles the twenty-third Book of the Iliad, the aged Entellus vanquishes the young and boastful Dares. This contest showed a complete system of striking and parrying.
It is quite likely that these and many other similar legends augmented the natural interest in the sport, and hastened its introduction into the greatest of all athletic festivals. But at Olympia the sport was marked with variations. Whereas, for instance, the Homeric heroes, when boxing, had protected their bodies by means of a girdle around the loins (Il. XXIII, 683), the Olympian athletes, being already accustomed to nudity in the wrestling and racing contests, dispensed with such protection. Again, from the first, Olympian boxers oiled the body, contrary to the practice of Homeric athletes.
Probably very few of the tactics of modern pugilists were unknown to the Greek athletes. Some of the accessories of a modern ring-fight, such as the “preliminary hand-shake,” tossing for corners, etc., were of course wanting; particularly noticeable was the absence of ropes and stakes; there was no referee to enforce so strict a code of ethics as the Marquis of Queensberry rules, fair play being secured by the voice of the people. Grasping or hugging the opponent was not permitted; it was in the elimination of such tactics that boxing differed from the pankration, a combination of boxing and wrestling. Kicking was likewise forbidden.
The set-to of Greek boxers probably resembled very closely that of modern pugilists. The ancient descriptions of the manner of giving and guarding or blocking blows are rather vague; but on antique vases may be seen representations of boxers facing one another in well-balanced attitudes, their heads thrown back, and their arms well advanced, in the manner of the best modern pugilism. In a famous Greek painting of boxers, one of the men stands with his left foot and hand advanced, his left arm slightly bent, and his right arm held across his lower chest, in fact, just as Fitzsimmons or Corbett would stand when expecting a blow. In the beginning of the contest, the boxer was sparing of his strength and preferred to assume the defensive position, and so wear out his opponent. It was, of course, considered a merit for a boxer to conquer without receiving wounds.
The principal differences between the technique of Olympian boxing and that of modern pugilism must be ascribed to the use at Olympia of that cruel boxing weapon known as the cæstus. This consisted of a heavy thong of dry, hardened leather, wound about the palm of the hand so as to form a formidable ridge of considerable circumference; it was even rendered more formidable by being loaded with lead, and studded with little metal projections. This nail-studded covering was called σφαῖρα, and was unknown to the ancient Greeks. That it was very dangerous is shown by the fact that when used in the practice gymnasia, it was itself covered, in order that young athletes might become accustomed to its use before subjecting themselves to its deadliness. But even more brutal than these were the μύρμηκες, called the breakers or crushers of limbs. One cannot conceive of a more formidable covering for the hand, unless it be the terrible cæstus of the Romans, to which Virgil alludes in the memorial games of Anchises (Æn. V, 401): “Tantorum ingentia septem Terga boum plumbo insuto ferroque rigebant.” “So terrible was the seven-fold bullhide stiffened with patches of lead and iron.” An examination of the representations of hands armed with this covering makes it evident that the straight blow or counter would not only fail to make the weapon effective, but would, if forcible enough, crush the fingers of the boxer between the leather and the adversary’s body. The cæstus must, therefore, have been used for round blows, or for the old English blow called the “chopper”; these were delivered by the back of the hand in an outward and downward swing, and, to be given without injury to the one who dealt them, required considerable skill.
The blows were directed at the upper parts of the body, and the wounds inflicted on the head, the temples, ears, cheeks and nose, were very severe and frequently proved fatal. The teeth were often broken or injured. It is related of Eurydamas, the Cyrenean, that his teeth were knocked out by his adversary, but that he quietly swallowed them in order to conceal from him how much he was injured; his adversary, disheartened by the apparently small effect of his powerful blow, lost hope and allowed Eurydamas to win the victory. The ears, especially, were exposed to great danger, and those of regular pugilists were usually so mutilated and swollen that the phrase “fighter’s ear” became a stereotyped expression. Little covers for the ear, known as αὐφώτιρες, were invented for gymnasium work, but they were not used in public games. Boxers, on account of the bruises and disfigurations that usually marked their features, were the subjects of numerous epigrammatic jests. Here is a sample from the pen of a comic poet:
“After twenty years,” says the author of the epigram, “Ulysses was recognized from his appearance returning to his home, by his dog, Argos. But thou, Stratophon, after boxing for four hours, hast been so altered, that neither dogs nor any person in the town could possibly recognize thee. And if thou lookest at thy face in a mirror, thou thyself wilt swear that thou art not Stratophon.”
Of the boxer Olympikos, a poet says that he once had a nose, a beard, eyebrows, ears and eyelids, but that when he had inscribed his name among the pugilists he lost them all.
The only protection against the wound-dealing cæstus, aside from skill in blocking blows, was a cap of bronze that was worn by boxers at Olympia.
Another noteworthy point of difference between Olympian and modern boxing is that instead of maintaining silence during the contest, as do the moderns, the Olympians accompanied their blows with certain inarticulate sounds, believing that their force was thereby increased. Modern stone-masons frequently do the same.
The contest at Olympia did not end until one of the combatants was rendered unconscious, or was compelled by fatigue, wounds or despair to declare himself conquered, which he signified by lifting his right hand.
In this connection it is interesting to trace the evolution of boxing in Greece. At first, of course, the bare fist was used; but as time went on, boxers learned to cover their fists and wrists with strips of undressed oxhide, the ἱμάντας ἐϋτμήτους βοὸς ἀγραύλοιο in the contest of Epeios and Euryalos (Il. XXIII, 684). Homer mentions these ἱμάντες as if they were very common. The name μειλίχαι was given them by later writers, because they dealt a mild blow; they are described by Pausanias (VIII, 40, 3) as made of raw oxhide, cut into thin strips and braided according to the custom of the ancients. The strips were wound round the palm, leaving the fingers uncovered, at least enough so that they could be bent to form a clenched fist. As the name indicates, the μειλίχαι were not cruel weapons; they served not only to moderate the force of the blow, but also to protect the hand from injury. They were used at the Nemean games as late as the famous contest between Kreugas and Damoxenos. It is likely that with these soft coverings the technique of blows conformed more nearly with the modern technique. It has been already shown that the straight counter was rendered impracticable by the cæstus. But without the cæstus the Greek was very skillful with this blow. The Greek also understood the advantage of the cross-counter, a blow sometimes thought to be a comparatively recent discovery in pugilism. If the Homeric description of the bare-handed fight between Odysseus and the impudent ruffian and parasite, Iros, be analyzed, the blow will be found plainly involved. Iros, who is of gigantic size, has insulted Odysseus. A ring is formed and they begin to fight (Od. XVIII, 73-231).
“On his right shoulder Iros laid his stroke,
Odysseus struck him just beneath the ear,
His jaw-bone broke, and made the blood appear,
When straight he strewed the dust.”
The blow of Odysseus must have been a cross-counter. Iros leads with his left at Odysseus’ head, but the blow falls instead on his right shoulder. Odysseus avoids the blow just as a trained boxer would avoid a similar one today; that is to say, he moves his head to the left, and catches the blow on his right shoulder, at the same moment, “rising to the stroke.” He then crosses Iros’ arm with his right, strikes him beneath the ear, and breaks his jaw, thereby “knocking him out.”
The introduction and use of the cæstus, brought about by the blood-thirstiness of the ancient mob, instead of being in the interest of further skill was decidedly a backward step. For not only did it improperly limit the technique of blows, as has been shown, but it was too sure a menace to the very source of human skill, the senses and consciousness itself.
Solon praised boxing from an educational point of view. Cato the elder must have entertained a high opinion of this art, for, according to Plutarch, he himself instructed his son, with whose education he took the greatest pains, in the art of boxing.
In justification of this praise, it must be remembered that Greek boxing, aside from its brutal features, had also its æsthetic side. A graceful carriage, dexterity, and promptness of activity were cultivated. We find Apollo, the embodiment of youthful grace and beauty, and the ideal of Hellenic æstheticism, represented as a boxer. Even from the medical point of view, boxing was highly esteemed. Aretaios recommends it for vertigo and chronic headache (De Morb. Dint. Cur. 1, 2).
This sport engaged young men of the noblest families in all parts of Hellas. Pythagoras is said to have been victorious when a youth in a boxing contest at Olympia. Rhodes, Ægina, Arkadia and Elis were noted for producing skilled pugilists.
Boxing was followed by wrestling and the pankration which were the final competitions. As is well known, wrestling was one of the most popular sports among the Greeks, from the days of Homer. According to mythology, Palaistra, the daughter of Hermes, established the πάλη, while her brother, Autolykos, is mentioned as the instructor of the young Herakles in this art. Plato also assigns the origin of wrestling to the earliest times and declares Antaios and Kerkyon to be the most ancient wrestlers. But the mode of wrestling was the result of a mere desire to fight, and so did not develop wrestling as an art. Theseus is said to have been the first to reduce it to a system and to practice it according to definite rules. We have already mentioned how Homer, in the games of Achilles, causes the powerful Telamonian Aias and Odysseus to engage in a wrestling bout. Wrestling matches were among the chief events in the famous games at Olympia and elsewhere. They were introduced earlier than boxing and were believed to show off the strength, activity and grace of the body to more advantage than any other contest. No other exercise required such perfect development of every muscle in the body, or an equal combination of strength and agility.
Plutarch calls wrestling the most artistic and cunning of athletic sports. It was as full of tricks and feints as that of modern times. The opponent was often deceived by feigned positions and movements. Sometimes the wrestler would feint as if to grasp his adversary in a certain place, but by a quick, cat-like movement would attack him in another which had been left exposed. Cunning was likewise practiced by the Homeric heroes. Odysseus overpowered Aias by striking him in the hollow of the knee. But while wrestling was characterized by tricks, the observance of certain rules was insisted on at Olympia. Striking, kicking, and pushing were prohibited, but, strange to say, disjointing an opponent’s fingers was allowed, probably on the ground that it involved grasping.
While the Greeks in their athletic sports sought for grace and symmetry as well as strength, it is nevertheless true that their wrestlers were noted for their bulk. Corpulency was considered advantageous for a wrestler for two reasons: first, the increased weight rendered it less easy for an opponent to lift him off the ground; second, it was easier for him, on the other hand, to overpower his adversary at the opportune moment. Nevertheless, a graceful style of wrestling, while less easy to attain under this condition, was much sought after. And oftentimes grace is the concomitant of a skill that possesses a sure advantage over mere bulk. Very joyous were the Olympic spectators when this fact was demonstrated. When the boy Kratinos of Aigeira was victorious in a match in which skill was more apparent than mere strength, the authorities permitted him to have placed in the Altis not only his own statue, but that of his teacher. Pausanias says that Kratinos exhibited a more graceful style than any other wrestler of his time.
Two modes of wrestling were in vogue at Olympia, standing and ground wrestling; the former, called the τριαγμός, was most common. The contestants stood upright, face to face, and after one had been thrown and had risen, the contest was renewed. This was the style practiced by the Homeric heroes. After Aias and Odysseus had thrown each other to the ground, they rose and continued the struggle. Victory was bought with three throws. Standing wrestling was practiced in later times at all the great games. Plato, especially, prefers this style, as it develops the upper parts of the body, the arms, shoulders, chest and neck. In the latter, or ground wrestling, when the combatants had fallen they continued the struggle on the ground, until one acknowledged himself conquered. This kind of wrestling belonged especially to the pankration, and like that cruel contest was unknown in heroic times. Solon, according to Lucian, claims that this mode is of great value as a preparation for war. Plato, however, does not so regard it. Dion Cassius, in his description of a battle between the Romans and the Jazyges on the ice of the Danube, claimed that in this particular instance, familiarity with ground wrestling was especially advantageous.
Of the numerous tricks, feints and holds practiced by the Greeks, the following were the most noteworthy. The antagonist endeavored to throw his opponent either by tripping him, or by grasping his foot with his hand. This latter style is differently illustrated on two vases. On the first vase the antagonist is represented as grasping with his right hand his opponent’s foot, which he has raised to a line with the middle of his body, while with the left arm he is further raising the thigh, thus forcing his opponent to the ground. On the second vase, the contestant has raised his opponent’s foot and is holding it up with the left hand, which is placed under the knee; both contestants are moving the right arm as if preparing to strike. This probably represents the pankration, as striking was not allowed in the wrestling bout. A similar illustration is seen on a coin; but here the antagonist, whose foot is held by his opponent, holds the latter in his arms in order to drag him down if he should fall.
Another trick, in which the athlete wound his leg around his opponent’s thigh, was often practiced. This point is beautifully illustrated by the famous group of wrestlers in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, of which a fine cast may be seen in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Winckelmann considers these wrestlers to be the sons of Niobe, as they were found in 1583 at the same time and place as the Niobe group. According to the legend, they were engaged in a wrestling match when slain by Apollo’s arrows.
The technical names of the various locks and holds which have come down to us do not give a clear and definite idea of wrestling. If one of the Hellenic gymnastes, who must have written accounts of the different modes of wrestling, had left behind a complete list of movements, or if the most important parts of the literature bearing upon gymnastics and agonistics had been preserved, we might form a more definite conception of the wrestling match. To the student of athletics it may be interesting to mention a few expressions which have come down to us from this ancient nomenclature. The word δράσσειν which literally means to seize or grasp the hand, was probably applied to the alternate grasping of the arms. This movement is beautifully illustrated on many antique works of Greek art, especially on vases, gems and coins. It was one of the chief manœuvres of the wrestlers and might have occurred at the beginning of the contest. Plutarch designates the different modes of attack, position and manœuvres of the wrestlers by the terms ἐμβολαί, παρεμβολαί, συστάσεις, παραθέσεις, from which general conceptions may be formed, but hardly clear imagery. The following Greek words, ὠθισμοί, περιπλοκαί, λυγισμοί, which literally mean pushing, grasping and twisting the limbs, were used by Lucian to express different styles of wrestling. The terms συναφή and κατοχή used by Hesychios when speaking of athletics, can apply only to the wrestling match itself. The movement whereby the antagonist is forced from his position is described by the term ἀπάγειν, literally to lead away or carry off. Ἄγχειν and ἀποπνίγειν describe the grasping of the neck and choking, in order to prevent respiration. This trick of grasping the opponent’s neck and then throttling him until he acknowledged himself conquered was considered a very cunning act. Sometimes the wrestler would obstruct respiration by forcing his elbow under the chin of his adversary, or he would attempt to bring the neck of the latter between his thighs and then exert such pressure as almost to strangle him. This occurred more frequently in the ground wrestling. On a gem is portrayed a group of boy wrestlers, one of whom, while resting on his right knee, is firmly holding by the throat his opponent, who is on both knees; to the right stands a prize vase with a palm, to the left, an umpire with a rod.
The ἅμμα involved grasping the opponent in such a manner that he could be held in a position that would tire him and perhaps exhaust his energy. Herakles in his wrestling contest with the mighty giant, Antaios, was believed to have used this trick; but Herakles held his antagonist in the air. Running toward each other with lowered heads for the purpose of butting, after the manner of rams, also belonged to the province of wrestling, and was practiced by Lucian himself in the Lykeion at Athens.
Plato protests against right-handedness (Laws, 8-794). He demands that a trained wrestler, pankratiast and boxer should be able to use both hands equally, so that if his opponent should succeed in turning him around he could defend himself from the other side. The wrestler would sometimes endeavor to place himself behind his adversary by a quick movement, then wind his leg around his opponent’s body and throw him. If successful in this attempt he would choke him.
Besides these tricks there were others with the fingers. For instance, a wrestler would grasp his opponent’s finger-tips and disjoint or break them, not letting go until the pain compelled his victim to declare himself conquered. This finger contest sometimes preceded the actual contest, and was oftentimes the only feature. Sostratos of Sikyon was specially famed for this mode of contest; he was twelve times victorious in the Nemean and Isthmian, twice in the Pythian and three times in the Olympian games. Leontiskos of Messina, in Sicily, also practiced wrestling in this manner and gained his victory by breaking his opponent’s fingers.
In ground wrestling the athlete even attempted to break his opponent’s toes. Another special scheme which belonged to the standing wrestling was as follows: the contestant made a circle around himself and challenged his opponent to force him from his position. If the latter failed to do this, the victory belonged to the former. Especially noted in this style of wrestling was Milo of Crotona, the most famous wrestler of antiquity. When a mere boy he was victorious in the Olympic and Pythian games. Six times his head was crowned with the sacred olive of Olympia. Young men of the noblest families engaged in these wrestling contests. Plato, when a youth, is said to have been victorious in the Pythian and Isthmian games, probably in the wrestling match.